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The Watch that Launched an Empire - The Rolex Oyster

terça-feira, março 04, 2014

In the 1920s when it was introduced, it was the only waterproof wristwatch in the world. It can lay an honest claim to the title of the first modern watch. The Rolex Oyster was the final result of years of development by Rolex and their competitors (Rolex founder Hans Wilsdorf wasn’t above buying a patent if it showed promise), and of of centuries of watchmaking before that. Today, when a watch goes into www.thewatchbuyersgroup.com/rolex-service-centerrolex repair los angeles, customers can thank Mr. Wilsdorf and his passion for excellence that the watches usually only need a basic clean, oil, and adjustment (COA). That, and a little polishing is often all that is required for them to be made good as new. It wasn’t always like that before the Oyster. The watch changed the course of watchmaking—and what we expect of our watches—forever.

Rolex and its founder, Hans Wilsdorf, knew they had a world-beating watch in the new Oyster. Before the Oyster, wristwatches would fog up—and die quickly, their movements corroded—sometimes just in very humid weather without actually being immersed in water. Dust and other debris made its way too easily into Pre-Oyster cases, too. (In simplest terms, the Oyster used a screwed-down case back with rubber gasket and a screw down crown to prevent the entry of moisture and dust.)

A New Watch and a New Kind of Advertising

In one of the first marketing coups to come after the introduction of the Oyster, Rolex asked Mercedes Gleitze—soon to be the first woman to swim the English Channel—to wear one on a Channel swim. She did and Rolex followed up the achievement with a front page advertisement in the London Daily Mail showing a photo of Ms. Gleitze with the following breathless copy:

Rolex introduces for the first time the greatest triumph in Watch-making – ROLEX ‘OYSTER’ – The Wonder Watch That Defies The Elements. MOISTURE PROOF WATER PROOF HEAT PROOF VIBRATION PROOF COLD PROOF DUST PROOF--Miss Mercedes Gleitze carried an “Oyster” throughout her recent Channel Swim. More than ten hours of submersion under the most trying conditions failed to harm its perfect timekeeping. No moisture had penetrated and not the slightest corrosion or condensation was revealed in the subsequent examination of the Watch.” With their ad, Rolex pioneered the concept of sports celebrity marketing.

Greatest Glory

The Oyster may have won its greatest glory during World War II. It was the favored watch of the immortal RAF pilots or “The Few” as Mr. Churchill called them, during the Battle of Britain. Too expensive to be an issued piece, the pilots nonetheless often spent their hard-earned pay to buy their own personal Rolex Oysters—widely regarded then as the finest hard use watch money could buy. The watch went on to become the cornerstone of the Rolex lineup. Even today, all the top of the line Rolex models share one basic attribute: their Oyster cases. That’s why they all say, “Rolex Oyster” on the dial. Not bad for a watch that was named after an Oyster. Wilsdorf got the inspiration after having trouble opening an oyster at a dinner party. Or so the legend goes.

For any of your Rolex repair needs, or to service any fine watch, be sure to visit www.thewatchbuyersgroup.com/rolex-service-center rolex watch repair. They have true CW-21 Certified Watchmakers and authorized factory parts accounts and offer competitive and attractive pricing.